Full Circle
by Hinode
Summary: Hello everyone, I'm back!... Everyone deserves a second chance at love. But when an unexpected opportunity presents itself, do we stick with our principles, or protect ourselves from further hurt?
1. Chapter 1

Hello everyone, I'm back! Wow, it sure has been a while since I posted anything...but we'll ignore that, shall we? Wow, I can't believe that this story is actually finished! I actually started it about a year-and-a-half ago, intending for it to be done by New Year's 2001...like _that_ worked out. So special thanks goes to Lit Tenshi for bugging me about finishing it for the last year. Go read her stuff if you already haven't.

Anyway, if anyone actually reads this, here are a few important notes:

1. It centers around a seldom--if ever, I'm really not too sure--used couple. I personally think they could really gravitate towards each other, given how they responded to each other in the series and the logistical ease with which they could come together (meaning, no "real" people to stand in their way). 

2. Now I once again remind you--just in case the banner at the top of the page isn't big enough--that this is _fan fiction_. That means that it is all a creation in my mind, and I've recreated the characters as best I could in the style of the original writers, but naturally I'm not them, so there will be some points at which you say, "Hey! She wouldn't act like that!" or "He would never say that!" I know. That's why it's "fan fiction," and not "creator fact."

3. This is non-yaoi (I know, I know...when am I going to write yaoi? I don't know). The couples I've used are there as background and/or support only to the main plot of the story. Please don't take offense if your favorite couple isn't getting it on. This is my head. I make no excuses (except maybe too much caffeine, which can over stimulate your brain and make it do all manner of strange things). So please, as always, read everything with a grain of salt.

_Disclaimer_: I don't own 'em. If I did, I wouldn't be up to my ears in debt for college. My grandchildren will still me paying off my college loans long after I'm dead and buried. Now, I ask you: does that sound like something the owner of a successful, cross-cultural television-and-manga series would have to do? I thought so.

Full Circle

Chapter 1: To Love

_Relena has truly outdone herself this time._

Looking around the spacious ballroom, it was impossible not to gasp in awe. Rich crimson velvet drapes hung down the floor-to-ceiling windows, obscuring just enough of the clear glass to accent the midnight sky and the twinkling starlight. By one window, a small string ensemble sat upon an elevated stage, producing beautiful melodies on their instruments. The soft glow of candelabras that adorned the small, Greek-inspired columns caused the carefully polished cherry instruments to gleam under the firelight. Forming a large semicircle around the room, elegantly adorned tables sat host to approximately half of the evening's guests. Small white candles encircled the elaborate flower centerpieces, causing soft shadows to play upon each individual table. 

The entire room, Lady Une noticed, was lit only by candlelight. Hanging from the center of the ceiling was an enormous gold and glass chandelier that must have held over three hundred candles. It was a concept purely from the past, and yet it seemed perfectly natural in the present time. The candles reflected off the spotless metal of their holder, creating an enchanting mix of shadows and light all over the room. The effect was a subdued, but not dark, room which made the whole, five hundred person-plus affair seem somehow more intimate than it was. But then, Relena Darlian was a master at making people feel comfortable in their surroundings.

A passing waiter offered Lady Une a glass of champagne, which she accepted. It was almost eleven o'clock after all, and one simply does not ring in the new year without a _little_ help from an alcoholic beverage. Taking a sip, Une couldn't help but wish _again_ that she had someone to share the lasting peace with. A tiny smile graced her lips as she thought of how much Treize would have enjoyed seeing the world they now lived in.

_Treize_. It didn't hurt so much anymore to think of him. In the beginning, she had been devastated. And, having formed the Preventers shortly after the war of AC 195 ended, she had not allowed herself proper time to grieve for his loss. Her inability to adequately express her grief manifested itself in her asking his advice, always to have her questions answered only with silence. Now, three years later, she had come to terms with her own sadness and guilt over her beloved's death. The grief no longer stabbed at her heart, but rather had faded to a dull throb that only panged if she poked it too hard. She was now able to think about him with out forcefully keeping herself from breaking down. It was actually quite nice to be able to reminisce without crying, and to think of the future as something more than a bleak, empty hole.

Of course, none of this changed the fact that she was twenty-two years old and without a date for New Year's Eve.

Lady Une laughed at the silly road her thoughts were heading down. For all that she had seen, all that she had done, all that she had matured, there was still that annoying stigma of being dateless on the one night when it seemed that _everyone_ had a date. If she was a lesser woman, she wouldn't have even bothered showing her face in public that night...and while the thought had in fact crossed her mind, Lady Une was never a person who bowed down to social expectancies.

Which was exactly why she was mentally kicking herself for feeling as if she stuck out like a sore thumb. Shaking her head and taking another sip of her drink, Une tried to clear her mind of such utterly useless thoughts. Although she had made it through the last three New Year's Eve celebrations alone, she had finally begun to feel the effects of her self-imposed isolation from the world of men. 

Glancing around the room, she saw Zechs Merquise and his very pregnant wife Lucrezia, both of whom had returned to Earth from Mars when they found out Lu was expecting a baby. Unconsciously smiling, Une was glad to have people who shared similar memories and experiences with her. Her eyes wandered to the dance floor, where former Gundam pilot Duo Maxwell and his wife Hilde were waltzing around the floor, their grandiose movements showing just how much they had had to drink that night. At a nearby table, Quatre Winner sat with a red haired woman Une didn't recognize, talking with fellow Preventers Chang Wufei and Sally Po. Next to them the evening's hostess Relena Darlian sat talking with her new fiancée Heero Yuy, who was quietly nursing a fresh black eye from earlier that afternoon when the couple had informed Relena's overprotective big brother of their new relationship status. Une couldn't help the soft chuckle that escaped her throat as she thought of how Zechs still had issues with the only person alive who was a better mobile suit pilot than him.

"What's so amusing?"

Lady Une gasped slightly, shocked at the intrusion into her privacy. She was even more shocked when she turned to see who had managed to catch her off guard.

"Good evening, Lady Une. It's been quite a while."

Standing beside her was a person Une had not seen since her days in OZ. "Trowa Barton," she nodded slightly, "how have you been?"

The man she was now speaking to, while most certainly the same person, was nothing like how she remembered him. No longer the young, diminutive Gundam pilot who had managed to sneak into OZ Space Force's ranks, Trowa now towered over Lady Une. By no means a short woman at five feet and eight inches, Une found herself quite surprised that she now had to look up to see the face of the best subordinate she had ever commanded. Managing to keep the flush of her cheeks to a minimum, she took note that it was not just Trowa's height that had changed. His shoulders were now a respectable width, fulfilling the promise from years before that he would become the largest of the five pilots. His hair still hung over one side of his face, obscuring one piercing green eye from view. His face had elongated ever so slightly, keeping each part of him well-proportioned with every other part. Even through the tuxedo jacket, Une could make out the faint definitions of well-toned muscles that reflected many long hours of doing strenuous work. Before she could stop it, her mind began to idly wonder exactly _how _well-defined he was.

"I've been alright," Trowa responded in his soft voice, which Une noticed was deeper than it had been three years earlier. "You didn't answer my question. What was so amusing?"

Taken aback, both by the strange, uninitiated conversation and her annoying, runaround thoughts, Une kept her calm reserve intact and gestured in the direction of Heero and Relena. "I was just thinking about how Heero received that lovely hallmark of battle."

A soft chuckle rose from Trowa's throat, a sound which Lady Une couldn't help but enjoy hearing. "He and Zechs still have some unresolved issues, I take it?"

"Let's just say that it's a very good thing they don't live on the same planet very often. By AC 200, Relena would either be short one brother or one lover, or possibly even both."

"Ah," was all he said. "Then perhaps it's a good thing that all mobile suits were destroyed."

Her first real laugh of the evening burst form Une's lips. "Yes, a very good thing indeed."

They fell silent for a moment, and Lady Une began a careful examination of her champagne glass in order to keep her eyes form wandering to Trowa's body. In her mind, she heard a faint clucking of the tongue sound, no doubt her brain's way of telling her that allowing these sort of thoughts about an inferior officer was _not_ a good thing--

_But he's not my subordinate anymore, is he?_

Shaking her head slightly, Une found herself wishing that she had taken up Sally's offer of setting her up on dates during the past year. Her relationship sabbatical was no doubt the reason behind her none-too-proper thoughts about Trowa's physique.

_But there's nothing wrong with looking, now is there?_

A trained soldier at heart, Lady Une quickly assessed the best course of action to take. A subtle glance to her right confirmed that Trowa was still standing beside her, seemingly comfortable in the silence. And seeing as how she _did_ want to have a conversation with someone, she came to the conclusion that she should try to keep up a dialogue with Trowa.

"So, how have you been using the peace time?"

Turning his body slightly to face her, Trowa studied his champagne glass a moment before answering. "I've been working in a traveling circus with my sister. It was where I hid myself during the wars, and the place came to feel as close to a home as I've ever had." He paused a moment before adding, "Besides, my sister is a very skilled knife thrower. I don't think she would have handled my leaving very well."

A short, surprised noise came from Lady Une's mouth, before it hit her that the man-boy she had remembered as being serious to a fault had just made a joke. A small laugh escaped her. "A very wise decision, it would seem." Wanting to keep the conversation going, Une asked, "What do you do in the circus?"

"Mainly I train the big cats, the lions and tigers. If I'm needed, I fill in for the clowns or acrobats. And," he added, "I'm the target for Catherine's act."

"Catherine," Une sampled the name, unconsciously hoping that the answer to her next question would be in the affirmative. "Is that your sister?"

Trowa nodded. Turning to the table where Quatre and company sat, he pointed to the red-haired girl Une had noticed before. "That's her. She and Quatre started dating recently."

The two fell into quiet again. Une noticed Sally get up and leave the table as Wufei got into what seemed to be a very heated conversation with said sister--_Thank you!--_and cringed as she heard even from the far distance that she was the loud "WHAT DID YOU SAY!?" that Catherine suddenly screeched.

Lady Une turned to Trowa, whom she noticed had blanched slightly. Turning her attention back to the table, she saw Catherine was reaching for her purse. "Trowa...what is she doing?"

"Excuse me." Trowa left Lady Une standing there as he hurried over to the table in order to stop his sister from reaching the knives that he _knew_ she kept in her purse. Although he was certain that whatever Wufei had said would warrant having sharp pointy objects hurled at him with deadly accuracy, he didn't really feel like cleaning up blood that night.

Une watched him briskly walk away, and before she could catch herself she found herself appreciating the way his muscles moved under the fabric of his tuxedo; of the way his long, lean legs carried him with a purposeful stride; of the way the light danced off of his obviously toned back...

"See anything you like, or are you just browsing?"

Snapped out of her inner reverie for the second time that night, Une turned to find Sally Po standing next to her, a knowing, evil smile on her face. Mustering what composure she could, Une replied coolly, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Sally burst out laughing. "Oh, please. Don't give me that! It's been very amusing to watch you try to _not _watch Trowa for the past five minutes. Celibacy finally getting to you?"

"Sally!" Une admonished, shocked at her friend's blunt--although, admittedly, accurate--observation. "I'll thank you to not make such crude remarks to your superior!"

A wry look crossed the blonde's face. "The only time you have ever pulled rank on me was when I started talking about that very interesting night out at O'Leary's Karaoke Bar six months ago--"

"Would you kindly stop talking?!" Une hissed. She apologized a moment later. "I'm sorry. Perhaps I've just had too much to drink tonight."

"Three glasses of champagne does not a drunk Une make," Sally laughed. Her expression sobered. "So why not tell me why you're really acting so evasive and snappish to me?"

Sighing, Une replied, "I really don't know. Maybe seeing Trowa stirred up old memories of OZ..."

"You work with former OZ officers everyday," Sally said. "I know that you're not telling me something. Just know that whenever you need to talk, I'm willing to listen, okay?"

Une smiled. "Thank you." She turned her attention to the table that Sally had vacated. "Now, what was Wufei saying to Trowa's sister?"

Instead of responding, Sally had to control her laughter as she watched Heero hold a spluttering Wufei in a shoulder lock while Trowa held his hand out to Catherine, who hung her head in defeat and handed her brother two gleaming knives that had been pulled from her purse. 

"You really don't want to know."

*~*~*~*~*

"I honestly don't know, Sally," Lady Une said over a cup of tea during a break at work a few days later. "I don't know why I reacted the way I did when I saw him again, and I don't know why I'm still thinking about him."

Sally pursed her lips in thought. "You know, Une, I'm the resident expert on feeling attracted to younger men," she said, referring to her recently developed relationship with Wufei, four years her junior. "I don't think there's anything wrong with liking Trowa. Goodness knows that it's time you started dating again."

"Sally," Une replied pointedly.

Sally held her hands up in mock defense. "It's the truth and you know it. You've said it yourself, you're over your grief. What would be so bad about finding love again?"

Putting her tea cup down, Une leaned her head into her hands, shaking it. "I don't know...nothing, really." Resting her arms on the table, she looked up at her friend, a weary smile on her face. "But we only spoke for a few minutes; there's no way anything will happen.

Before Sally could respond, the intercom on Lady Une's desk buzzed. "Miss Une?" her secretary, Evelyn, spoke. "There's a call for you, a mister Trowa Barton."

Shocked brown eyes met jolly blue ones. "Nothing will happen, huh?" Sally smirked. "Go ahead, take the call." She leaned back in her seat, making no move to leave the room and give Une any privacy. 

Deciding it would be better not to respond to Sally's less than mature antics, Une just sighed and turned on her phone. "Send him through, please."

A moment later, Trowa's handsome--_All right, I admit it--_face appeared on the screen. "Good afternoon, Lady Une."

"Trowa, hello. To what do I owe the call?" Une was suddenly wishing that Sally had been out on assignment that day, because she wouldn't have had to put up with the look of utter disbelief that was pasted upon her friend's face.

Trowa, for his part, seemed unfazed by the formality of Lady Une's words. "I felt bad that our conversation the other night had to be cut short. I was hoping to see you some time to continue it."

If Sally had been a lesser woman, she would have jumped out of her seat and begun chanting "I told you so!" But, being the mature woman that she was, she just kept her amusement limited to a gleeful smirk. 'I told you so' she mouthed silently.

Unable to keep a small amount of shock from filtering into her expression, Lady Une faltered slightly. "E-excuse me?"

Trowa's expression remained as neutral as ever. "I was hoping to talk with you again sometime. The circus is off for the season, and my sister and I are staying in Brussels to be near friends. I'd like to see you while I'm here."

He said that, Une noticed, without a hint of question in his voice. He wasn't asking her to go somewhere with him, he was telling her that she _would_.

"That...that would be very nice. Any particular time you had in mind?"

"Are you free tonight?"

"Yes."

Trowa nodded. "All right, then. I'll pick you up at seven for dinner. Good day." He severed the connection before Lady Une could respond.

Une stared at the now-blank screen, before pulling her head up to look at Sally, who was still grinning wildly. "What...what just happened?"

Sally couldn't take it anymore, and burst out laughing. "You, my dear girl, have a date tonight!"

~*~*~*~*~

So...how's I do? The whole story is written, so expect the next two chapters to be posted this week. Or, if this sucked and you want me to burn every copy I have, let me know that too. But either way, see that nifty little "Review" button below this note? Click that, and leave me your thoughts. Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

Here it is, chapter two. *pause* Would someone review this? Please? I'll keep coming back unless you do.

_Disclaimer_: I am neither associated with nor affiliated with the companies or persons involved in the creation, production, or marketing of _Shin Kidousenki Gundam Wing_ and al properties contained therein... Does that sound official enough?

Full Circle

Chapter 2: To Lose

"I still don't see why you're all making such a big deal out of this."

Sally, Lucrezia Noin-Merquise, and Mariemeia Khushrenada sat in Lady Une's bedroom later that evening acting like giddy schoolgirls. "Because it _is_ a big deal," Mariemeia, Une's adopted daughter, squealed with excitement. "I'm finally going to have a father!"

"Mariemeia!" Lady Une squawked, a blush rising to her face. "I'm only going out to dinner to catch up with an old...and old..."

"Well, 'friend' hardly seems like the right word," Lucrezia said, pushing herself up off the bed. It was not an easy task, considering that she was nearly as large as a Virgo mobile doll. "But you're right." She turned her attention to the young red-haired girl bouncing around the room. "Mariemeia, Lady Une is going to have to not screw this up if Trowa's going to be your new father."

"Noin!" Une cried, using the old name for her friend. "I don't believe it, you've all gone crazy," she muttered as she walked over to her closet. She frowned as a thought crossed her mind. "I don't know what to wear."

The chatter of the other three ladies stopped. "What do you mean, 'don't know what to wear'? I can't believe that you only own work clothing," Sally said dubiously.

Shaking her head, Une replied, "No, I mean I have no idea of whether we're going somewhere fancy, or somewhere casual, or--"

"It's _Trowa,"_ Sally said. "I don't think that boy does 'fancy'."

"Oh, please, don't call him a _boy_."

Sally leapt to her feet. "Aha! I knew it! You're afraid of this because he's younger than you!"

"But Une," Lucrezia said, "Treize was four years older than _you_."

"That was different," Une replied hastily.

Clucking her tongue, Sally walked over to where Lady Une was standing. "Nuh uh. No double standards allowed. Let us not forget that you gave Wufei and me your blessing, and we're the exact same age as you and Trowa."

Lady Une toyed with the fabric in her hands. "It's not that, it's just..." _Ah, dammit, I hate it when I get flustered! This is not like me at all!_

"Anne," Lucrezia used Une's real name, "stop worrying so much."

"Yeah, this isn't like you," Mariemeia added.

She offered her friends a small smile. "I know, thank you all." Her smile widened as the butterflies stopped dancing around in her stomach. "Now get out of here. It's already 6:30, and Trowa will more that likely be on time. It would probably cause him a great deal of psychological harm to be greeted at the door by all three of us."

"Four!" Mariemeia piped up.

"Ah, you're right, four." Lady Une smiled, then gently ushered Sally and Lucrezia out of her room. 

"Okay, okay, we can take a hint!" Sally laughed. "But I expect you to call me when you get home tonight."

"Sally, you're acting like a love struck teenager," Une laughed. "I'll call the both of you _tomorrow_, all right?"

Nodding, Lucrezia waddled to the door. "Good luck tonight," she offered gently. "And have fun!"

Une shut the door behind Lu and Sally. Turning around, she faced Mariemeia. "Now, young lady, don't you have some homework to do?"

Hanging her head, the girl sighed. "Yes, ma'am." She turned to go to her bedroom. "Oh, Une? Just let me know when you leave, okay?"

Smiling, Une nodded. "Of course." Bracing her shoulders and plastering a determined look on her face, she added, " Now if you'll excuse me, I have a date to get ready for."

~*~*~*~*~ 

Silence, Une learned quickly, was something that Trowa was very comfortable with.

The evening was going well enough. As she had suspected, Trowa showed up at precisely 7:00, leaving Une to wonder exactly how he had synchronized his arrival with the first chime of the grandfather clock in her living room.

Trowa had taken her to a quaint Italian bistro in downtown Brussels. It was lovely, but not too fancy; it was the perfect place for two people to get to know each other. _So, Sally was right: he doesn't really do 'fancy'_, she had thought as he held the door open for her.

While he might not be much of a talker, Une mused, he was the perfect gentleman in every other respect. His sister had done a very nice job of teaching him manners. Trowa held doors open for her, pulled her chair out when they had been given a table in the restaurant, and had not been pushy about ordering for her. And while Une thought this was all well and good, by the time dinner came she was in the mood for some conversation.

"So, Trowa," she asked. "How did you find this place? I've never even heard of it before."

Trowa put his fork down. He chewed slowly, almost deliberately so, and waited a moment after swallowing before answering. "Quatre recommended it." That was all he had to say on the matter.

"Oh. I can't believe that I've lived in Brussels for the last three years and I never came here."

"You must not have a lot of free time, though," Trowa commented.

Une nodded. "Yes but even before, when I used to visit this city with Tre---er, when I was younger." She caught herself before saying his name. What worse thing could you do than to mention your former love's name when on a date with someone else. _Of course, I'm certain that to Trowa this isn't a date._

A soft chuckle caught Lady Une's attention. "It's all right, you know."

"What is?" she asked, not quite understanding.

"To say his name."

Lady Une felt her cheeks flush. "I...I, well, that is..." she found herself unable to make a coherent sentence.

Trowa chuckled again, a soft, deep rumble that echoed from the back of his throat. Une found herself again enjoying the sound. "Treize was a large part of your life for a very long time. I don't expect you not to have made many memories with him."

Shaking her head, Une tried desperately to keep her thoughts in some semblance of order. "That's very true," she said softly. "This city does hold more than a few memories of...him."

Trowa tilted his head slightly to the side. Although his expression did not leave its neutral front, his voice belied the seeming lack of emotion. "It still hurts." It was a statement, not a question. Une had noticed that this was a recurring feature of their conversations; he seemed to just _know_ certain things, thus when he brought them up, he wasn't questioning about them. "You can't bring yourself to say his name."

"Pardon?" Une was slightly taken aback at his observation.

"That's the second time in thirty seconds that you've caught yourself from saying his name. The pain his death caused you is still there."

"I'm sorry," she lowered her eyes, staring at the half-eaten chicken parmesan on her plate. "You're on a break from your job, staying in Brussels expecting to have fun. I'm not being the best of company right now." To her shock, Trowa burst into a deep, full laugh.

"Lady Une," he smiled, the corner of his visible eye crinkling slightly, "I spent a good portion of the Eve Wars around Heero and Wufei before they gained the social skills they now possess." He paused, thinking briefly of the scene the two had caused at the New Year's Eve party. "Well, at the very least, I was with them before either spoke very much. I assure you, you are nowhere _near_ being bad company. In fact," he leaned over the table, peering into her surprised brown gaze, "I'm having an excellent time tonight."

Une blinked in surprise, but her face quickly eased into a relaxed smile. "Good. Because I'm finding that this evening has been quite pleasant as well."

~*~*~*~*~

After dinner, for which Trowa paid--_And I thought chivalry was dead--_Une had suggested that they take a walk along the River's Edge, a new open-air marketplace that had recently become a popular tourist destination. They had been there for a half-hour, simply browsing the shops and stands that lined the city block. Since overcoming her initial hesitancy at dinner, Une found that the conversation flowed quite easily. Or rather, she found it much easier to talk to him, as Trowa still didn't say much. But, Une was slowly coming to realize, that was not because he did not have anything to say, or he found what she was saying boring. Quite the opposite, actually. Whenever they would pause their walking, she found Trowa immediately made eye contact with her, and when he did say something, it was always an intelligent remark to something she had said, or a unique insight into the conversation. Trowa was simply a man who did not waste words. And that was something she found herself appreciating. And, more to the point, enjoying.

~*~*~*~*~

"Please explain to me, Woman, _why_ you're babbling on about this to me, and not one of you're addle-minded girlfriends?"

"Because, the only other person who knows about this right now is Noin, you're Trowa's friend, under Une's command, and whether you care to admit it or not, her friend too. So, you are the natural choice for me to discuss this with."

"That was not the explanation I wanted to hear."

"You didn't tell me to say what you wanted to hear."

"Grr, Woman! They went out for dinner! That's nothing to get so excited over!"

"So you're saying that the first time you took _me_ out to dinner, there was no reason for either of us to be excited?"

"That was different. Our first dinner was a date."

"Dammit Wufei! You don't see a _slight_ double-standard in your logic?"

"No."

"Argh! You're impossible, you know that?"

"Hmph. You're one to talk, Woman. You call me up at 9:30 at night to prattle on about Commander Une and Barton spending a few hours together. I'll bet you're already planning their wedding."

"Hmm..."

"Woman! Can you not tell the difference between honestly and sarcasm? Of all the women, I _had _to end up with such a--"

"Watch it, buster. And don't forget: _you_ asked _me_ out first."

"Which is completely beside the point."

"Do you have anything intelligent to contribute?"

"No."

"Fine then. I'll just hang up."

"_You_ called _me_."

"Grr..."

"..."

"..."

"Sally?"

"Yes, Wufei?"

"...Neither of them are the kind of people who take these kinds of matters lightly. If anything comes of all this, it will be serious."

"Glad to hear you think so too."

"Too?"

"Yup! Noin and I already figured out that light blue bridesmaid dresses would be the only color that looks good on both of us and--"

"GAH!"

~*~*~*~*~

"Do you miss it?"

"Pardon?" Une glanced up in surprise as Trowa paused in his walking to ask her the unexpected question. They had come to rest along the edge of the water, just on the outskirts of the bazaar. The sun had long since set, and the cloudless night was illuminated by a full moon and the shiny stars of the winter sky. It was a bit chilly, but the temperatures had been surprisingly mild that season, especially given Brussels' latitude. The two former soldiers stood not quite facing each other in the soft glow from the heavens, and Une found herself entranced by the way the moonlight highlighted Trowa's hair and caused a gleam in his piercing green eye. It was more than enough for her to falter momentarily and not grasp where the conversation had turned. "Do I miss what?"

"OZ. The war. Everything, I suppose." Trowa's voice, while normally soft, usually lacked the kind of reminiscence Une thought she heard now. "Have you adjusted to peace?"

Lady Une was surprised that she had to think about her answer. For so long now, she had been certain that she didn't miss anything, that all she held dear now was worth the loss of...of... No, she realized, she really hadn't lost anything. The only thing she missed wasn't really a thing anyway... "No, I don't miss it. The peace of the last three years more than makes up for any hardships that came with losing an old way of life." She turned slightly to look at him. "That's what you were truly asking, wasn't it? Whether or not I had come to accept a new way of life?"

For a moment, Trowa said nothing, his gaze remaining cast upwards on the sky...on the moon...on the colonies...on home, perhaps? Une really couldn't be sure, but his expression seemed almost...wistful. "Yes, perhaps that is what I meant. You felt alive when you went into battle, yes?"

Again, Une paused to think. Felt alive? Well, certainly, she had enjoyed the feelings of power and supremacy; why would she have joined the military if she didn't? She remembered how she had relished the flavor of command, of the strategies, the planning, the concentration that went into battle. She remembered how she felt the first time she sat in an Aries, the control of a twenty meter-high, seven-ton battle suit at her fingertips. And she remembered her first battle, leading her squadron out against a small rebel uprising in South America; she remembered the exhilaration she felt, the delight in the physical and mental challenge of fighting her enemy, and she remembered how after that day, she had vowed to be the best cadet OZ had ever seen.

"Yes," she finally answered. "I felt alive."

Trowa nodded. He turned his face away from hers again, instead choosing to stare out into the inky night. "Why did you fight?"

Une briefly wondered why she was being questioned about events of so long ago. "May I ask, Trowa Barton, why you find such interest in my past exploits?"

A tiny smile graced the curve of his mouth. "You and I, so much of who we are, who we were, is tied up in our battles. I know why I fought, as I'm sure you do as well. But I must wonder, why did _you_ choose to fight? Why make that choice?"

"That choice?" Une echoed. She closed her eyes, seeing as vivid yesterday, the fiery arguments she went through with her father, a minor baron in the German province of Bavaria, over her life. She had only been sixteen years old, surely he hadn't expected her to just roll over and accept an arranged marriage in that day and age! There was so much more she wanted to do, to see; there was so much more she was capable of! Women could do anything men could! she had sworn. She herself was far brighter than many of her tutors, remember how they had to keep finding new ones? Lady Une could still see the rage in her father's eyes the night she had announced her plans to enroll in the Lake Victoria Military Academy. So what if the Honorable Treize Khushrenada, heir to the Romefeller Foundation and graduate of the Academy, had told Baron Une himself that he felt Anne had "great potential"? She would marry as her father told her, just as aristocratic women had done for centuries. She would probably never advance anyway; war was still a man's game.

She had left the next morning for Lake Victoria. She had risen to the top command of the Specials, and was instrumental in bringing about a New World Order. But unlike so many other aristocrats who enlisted, she did not discard her former title. No, her rebellion was for an entirely different reason. Each time the Specials achieved a victory, she was one of the leaders of those victors. Whenever the Alliance World Congress met, she was there right alongside Lord Khushrenada on behalf of the world's military. When the geo-political face of humanity was irreversibly changed, for better and for worse, she was at the forefront of everything. And all the while she was known, with equal respect and fear, as both Colonel and _Lady_ Une. Her father knew, her father ate his words, with each step into the future the world took with his daughter as its leader. The Lady Annemarie Une never let her father forget who she was, even when she herself forgot. Even on his deathbed--struck down by a heart attack in the midst of the Eve Wars--Baron Une watched his daughter announce to the world that the Colonies and Earth were to be united under OZ rule; a rule that she, in large part, held. _Do you see_, Lady Une had wondered at the time, _Do you see what I have become_? _I can do anything_.

"I chose to fight," Une remarked slowly, for the first time truly understanding her motives herself, "to prove that I was good enough. To prove that I was worth something." She shook her head slightly, wondering how she could have let pride dictate her actions for so long. "I don't miss the old way of life, Trowa, but neither do I regret it. Why regret the past? It cannot be changed, only learned from. It was necessary to create the world in which we now live. Can you honestly say that you regret anything that you did?"

Trowa shook his head, the smile still on his face. "No, I don't regret anything. But can any of us ever really help but wonder, 'what if'?"

"That is human nature, isn't it?" Une agreed. "To wonder what may have been?"

_What if I had stayed...? What if I had married that man...? What if I had lived my life never knowing anything more than what I had...? What if I had never taken that chance...?_

_What if I had never joined the military...? What if I had never proven myself as a soldier...? What if I had never fallen in love with Treize...?_

"They say," Trowa snapped Une out of her reverie, "that it is better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all." He turned to face his companion. "I lost before I learned to love, but now I don't think I could lose again. So, Lady Une, is it better to love and lose? Or should one never love at all, and save himself the hurt?" 

"You do ask many personal questions, Trowa."

"Ah, but they are only questions, mere words, are they not? Surely there is no harm in a discussion of philosophies?" Trowa continued to look at Une, studying her face for her reaction, and waiting for her answer. He himself was wondering when he began to care so deeply about Lady Une's reactions to all that had transpired over the passed few years. But then, really, it was not so strange what he was asking. Trowa knew that for anything more to transpire between Une and him, he would need one question answered definitively: had she loved and lost forever, or was there a chance for her to come full circle?

Lady Une, in contrast to the previous inquiries, already knew the answer to this. Trowa's question was one she had asked herself every day since Treize's death, but she had never been able to come up with an answer. Tonight, however, had shed light onto everything. Whatever her past, whatever might or might have happened became irrelevant. She had said it herself, regret had no place in her life. It never had. She didn't regret loving Treize, nor could she imagine her life had she not loved him. She didn't regret living on while he had not, and she didn't regret only having old memories. But most importantly, she didn't regret wanting to make new memories, with someone else. 

_Treize, you loved this life, and you loved people. Perhaps it is time I finally rejoined this world you loved so, and stopped hanging onto ghosts._

"One should most certainly love, Trowa," Une answered without a hint of waver or uncertainly. "And one should lose, for how else do we know the value of what we love? We embrace what we love all the more when we are reminded of what we have lost. To love, to lose, to live, they are all the same, are they not?"

Trowa smiled, a full smile passing his lips. "Yes," he said. So, she believed in the continuity of humanity. That was good. "So, then. No regrets, embrace your memories, and live. Have I succinctly summed up your philosophy, Lady Une?"

"Quite nicely, Trowa." A soft smile fell upon her lips as she followed his lead and began walking back towards the bazaar, where they could hail a cab and bring the evening to a happy end. "Oh, and Trowa?"

"Yes?"

_No regrets._ "My name is Anne."

"Anne." Trowa smiled. "Then that is what I shall call you from now on."

~*~*~*~*~


	3. Chapter 3

Here it is: the end of "Full Circle."

_Disclaimer_: stop reminding me already. It hurts enough as it is to know I didn't have any part of this.

Full Circle

Chapter 3: To Live

It had been a week. A week since she had spoken to him or even seen him. A week that had given her time to analyze every single aspect of every single word that was said, every gesture that was made, and every thought that was thought, and try to figure out just what had gone wrong. Thus far, Lady Une hadn't come up with a damn thing.

_There you go again, Une, overanalyzing everything. What was it that Treize always said, 'Don't think about all the details all at once, let the picture come to you gradually,'? So much for following good advice._ Lady Une's thoughts were without mirth. _She_ had had a surprisingly good time with Trowa--_at least I can admit that much_--but the week had passed without communication, and gradually Une's spirits had shifted from "unequivocally happy," as Sally had teased the Monday following the so-called date, to "unnervingly melancholy," as Sally had called her earlier that Friday afternoon as most Preventers headed home from the headquarters office. Sally, she surmised, had no qualms about honesty. 

But for all the emotional tandem, Sally's daily commentary, and good old benefit-of-the-doubt, Lady Une was still left--

_Working late on a Friday night._

A part of her shuddered at such..._girlish_ thoughts. After all, she was a former OZ colonel, the leader of the Preventers, she had helped usher in the new world order for goodness sake! So why, _why_, was she sitting around moping over whether or not a man had called her?

_Because you wanted him to._

It was a harsh truth, one that Une had spent the last week diligently trying to avoid facing, but here in her office, alone, with nothing to disturb her, it came and reared its ugly head. That was the damnable part about hearts: they were always more honest than brains. And the absolute last thing that Lady Une needed right now was honesty. "Why, why, _why_ couldn't I have refrained from caring?" She picked up a picture of Treize that sat on her desk. No longer a sorrowful reminder of the past, it now served as a vent for Lady Une's frustrations with the world from time to time. "Can you answer me that, Treize? You always told me to be careful, for all the world is a battlefield. Is it too late? Have I already conceded victory to the enemy?" She fell silent for a moment, her thoughts swirling around her last statement. Was it true? Was she viewing Trowa as an enemy. Or had she...

"My god," Une murmured, the revelation hitting her. It was not Trowa she had been wary of. "I'm afraid to fall in love again." So much for no regrets and love coming full circle! It was a harsher truth than the first, for it struck at the very core of her connection with Trowa. She had felt so confident that night, so sure that, regardless of the outcome, love was a far better thing to only remember than to never have known at all. But if such an opinion were to be held true, then wouldn't she also have to bring herself to task regarding this latest loss?

_What am I talking about? I'm acting as though I lost an emotional connection I never had in the first place._

_Is love lost when there was no love to begin with?_

As Une sat and pondered this new--disturbing--train of thought, something else occurred to her. What had Trowa meant when he said that she knew his motives? Was there something in his file that might explain his line of questioning that night? Could she have missed key information pertaining to Trowa's reappearance in her life? Or was there something else he had meant...?

*_RING_*

"Damn," she swore softly, not wanting to be pulled out of her reverie. "Who on Earth would be placing a call at such an hour?" Surely no one else in the Headquarters was working as late as she, and she wanted to analyze her discoveries more; Une was very tempted to simply not answer the phone.

A second ring. Reaching for the keypad attached to the vidphone, Une pulled up the command for caller ID. Two phrases stopped her breath: _Caller: Mr. T. Barton. Location: Unknown._

On the third ring, Une snapped out of her daze and switched on the phone, audio only. The last thing she needed was for Trowa to see her in such a contemplative state. Why give the man any more advantage than he already had? "Hello Trowa," she said as smoothly as she could muster. All her years on the political scene had indeed served her well.

"No video? Is anything the matter, Anne?" No 'hello,' not formalities. Trowa's specialty. So unlike the inquisitive man of only a week before. And yet, he could not have been unaffected by their conversation, for had he not just called her by her real name? _Best to save the internal cross-examination for later_, she thought. There were more pressing matters at hand. "No, what would make you suggest that?"

A chuckle came through from Trowa's end. "You're working on a Friday night, don't answer your phone until the third ring, and have the video turned off. You are a more thorough soldier than that."

If she hadn't been so shocked at the attention to detail he paid, she would have been offended by the underlying implication of his analysis. "I had pressing matters of international security which needed immediate attention." It was a pathetic excuse even as she thought of it, but even three years ago he had had that unnerving effect on her.

An outright laugh came through the phone, a sound which Une found herself still wholly unused to. "If a matter was so pressing, then surely you would have been awaiting any information you could receive, and would have answered on the first ring. And you are not indirect in your dealings with other people; you would have wanted eye contact when delivered news, either good or bad."

"You presume quite a bit about you, Trowa--"

"I served under you. I learned to read you quite well. I also know you, Anne. You were honest with me last week, and I am grateful to say that I'm one of the few people who knows you well enough to know what is inside your heart."

To say she was taken aback was an understatement. Had she completely misread Trowa that night? Or had he been paying attention to even the most minute detail, just as she had? Just what was the man named Trowa Barton trying to accomplish by coming back into her life.

"If you know me so well, then surely you will understand the nature of my next question: what is the point of all this?" There it was, all laid out in plain sight. It was time for Trowa to confess his angle, so that she could get on with her life. There was no question that her life would continue without Treize, but what role would the young man, who had at one point served under her and tried to kill her, play in it?

There was a pause on the other end of the line, before Trowa's voice came through, much clearer than before. "I respected you then, even when we were enemies. But obstacles were always placed in out way until Relena's party. You fascinated me, then and now. It was as simple as that."

A creak at the front of her office caused Lady Une's head to shoot up. Her door opened wide to reveal Trowa standing there, a cell phone in hand. "I think this is something best discussed in person, don't you?" he asked, disconnecting the call on his phone.

"Should I even bother asking how you managed to get into Preventers Headquarters after hours?" Lady Une refused to concede any more of a victory to Trowa than he already had. While she no doubt believed her words from the other night, that loss is integral to life, she still wanted a bit of her pride to be preserved.

Trowa walked over to her desk, and looked at her for a moment before reaching across to switch off her phone. "No sense in driving the government's phone bill up, right?" he smiled.

"You know," Une said softly, unsure how to handle Trowa's close proximity, "I distinctly remember you as not having a sense of humor. How much has changed these passed three years?" 

"I learned to love. And I learned to laugh. Three years of peace is a long time in which to learn how to live."

"So then, you live the philosophy we discussed last week?" Was she ready for this? To love again, to live? Life was precious, and the past littered with the mistakes of human hearts. Would she--_could_ she--pick up the pieces from the past and embrace a clean future? Was this what Trowa offered to her now, as he continued to stare into her eyes, into her soul?

Trowa shook his head. "Unfortunately, I do harbor regrets about my actions during the war. But a very wise person told me, a very long time ago, that they best way to live was to act on your emotions." Trowa shook his head slightly. "When he told me that, I was in no position to understand him. But, as I said, three years is a long time. And I understand him now."

He stood up, and motioned for Une to join him as he walked to the window. She got up and walked to him, waiting to hear him continue. Hope is a light that shines in the darkest hour, she had heard once, and at that moment, all she felt was hope. Hope for the past, the present, and most importantly, for the future. So, she waited for him to finish his train of thought. And she hoped.

"I don't know if I always had emotions, but regardless, I learned to embrace them. They made me stronger, and they made me better. But I don't regret how I used to be, because to regret the past is to not understand how we got to where we are today, is it not?" He inclined his head slightly, and Une nodded once in response. _So_, Trowa mused_, we are heading towards the same place after all._ Trowa's pensive expression turned to one of contentment. "And I came to the decision not to waste a moment. Live life, and love as if tomorrow may not come. Is that close to your own philosophy?"

Lady Une smiled then. "Yes, it is quite close, Mr. Barton."

Choosing not to respond verbally, Trowa instead tilted Une's face up towards his, and gently lowered his lips onto hers. 

_To love, to lose, to live; they are all the same, are they not? _

And then, you love again.

~*~*~*~*~

"Why are we doing this?"

"Because technically, he's a trespasser on Preventers grounds, and we have to make sure he's not a threat. Now shut up!"

"A threat? _Him_?! This is thinly veiled, even for you.

"Oh be quiet! Do you want them to hear you?"

"What would it matter? This was all your idea."

"Yeah, but I'm not your superior, so you have no reason to be here, except of your own reconnaissance. You'd be in as much trouble as me."

"If you're admitting that there would be hell to pay if we got caught, then why are we still here?"

"Because they're our friends and we have to make sure that they don't get hurt."

"This all sounds eerily familiar..."

"If you stopped asking the same questions over and over, I wouldn't have to repeat myself, now would I?"

"Woman, you are grating on my last-- What are they...?"

"Are they...?"

"They are..."

"Well."

"Well."

"So much for worrying about them! They look like they're doing fine. I guess we weren't needed here after all!"

"..."

"Wufei?"

"..."

"Wufei?"

"..."

"Your eye is twitching..."

"..."

"*Sigh* Let's go, Wufei."

"..."

**The End**

~*~*~*~*~

Okay...it's over. That wasn't so terrible, was it? I realize that Trowa's actions and motives seemed unclear at best, and convoluted and out-of-character at worst. It was through no intentional reason, other than the fact that he was not my primary focus. Yes, I do think that this was interesting couple ripe for exploration, but about halfway through writing is (and countless bouts of writer's block) the story turned into a Lady Une exposition piece. She is still my favorite character in GW, as those of you who read my other Une-centric piece _I Dreamed a Dream_ are doubtless aware of. The story didn't follow _quite_ the road I had hoped for, but Trowa was harder to write than I had expected. All you Trowa-writers out there get a huge banner of support from me. And the little Sally/Wufei blurbs? I'm sorry, but I see them as comic relief equal to anything Duo and Hilde could be put up to. They're just fun.

So, let me know how you liked it, okay? 


End file.
